


When the Magnets First Met

by KetchupEnthusiast



Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Bars and Pubs, Extra Serving of Schmaltz, First Meetings, Gen, Insecurity, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:14:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28315125
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KetchupEnthusiast/pseuds/KetchupEnthusiast
Summary: A reluctant night out on the town provides Tyler Breeze with a pleasant surprise.
Kudos: 2





	When the Magnets First Met

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by Breezango's appearance on The Bump (June 24th, 2020).
> 
>  **BREEZE:** “So the funny part is, I met 'Dango years ago. I was in FCW, I believe he was already on the road working for the original NXT. We were actually out one night in Tampa and I knew of him but I never really met him. And when he showed up... this dude was like, THE dude. I was like 'my god, this is like... he's the coolest'. He's this good looking dude, jacked, he was what I wanted to be, essentially. He was so cool... he walked in like the man and he was only there for five minutes, impressed us all, and left. And I went, 'my god, he's the coolest'.”
> 
>  **FANDANGO:** “Seven years in developmental, the coolest guy. I was like the college guy going to high school parties, Breeze.”
> 
> I fudged with the time-line a little bit here, Tyler Breeze wasn't a character in FCW (he was still Mike Dalton). Also, my "Johnny Curtis" is less of a creepy pig and more of a sleazy flirt... make of that what you will.

As he sat at the bar, Tyler Breeze sourly remembered the conversation that had landed him here in the first place...

_“You should come down from your ivory tower every once in awhile, mingle with us commoners,” Xavier had teased, as they cleaned the kitchen in their apartment. He'd been working for the past hour to get Tyler to agree to a night out, chipping away at his resistance slowly, “some time out on the town would be good for you AND your ego, you could network with the guys."_

_"And why exactly would I want to do that?" Tyler asked._

_"Because in the wrestling business, WHO you know is just as important as WHAT you know.”_

_Breeze had rolled his eyes at the lecture, but eventually accepted defeat. He could tell that Xavier wasn't going to let this one go._

_“Okay, fine, I'll go... but only if you promise not to ditch me. I don't want to sit in a bar full of uggos without anyone to talk to.”_

_“Pinky promise,” Xavier had said, offering his finger to link together with Tyler's as a vow._

Of course, once Xavier had discovered that this particular bar had a healthy assortment of arcade games available to play, their pact had gone out the window. As a result, Tyler now found himself alone, nursing a vodka soda while Xavier was tucked away in a corner somewhere, mashing buttons and quickly running through a fanny pack full of quarters.

“So much for pinky promises,” Tyler muttered, letting out a heavy sigh. He knew from the get-go that coming here was a bad idea. Bars really weren't his scene, especially dive bars like this one. They were always so gaudy, filled with the type of obnoxious buffoonery that Tyler made it a habit to avoid.

 _What a waste of time_ , he thought. He could have been at home, doing the deep conditioning treatment that his hair so desperately needed, maybe using some of that new yak's milk face cream that he'd ordered online. He considered bailing, but unlike Xavier, Tyler took his promises seriously.

The model-turned-wrestler began looking around the room to investigate options that might alleviate his boredom. He supposed that Xavier was right, it would help to mingle. Most of his co-workers had the impression that he was a bit of a cold fish (and rightfully so). Yet everyone else in the bar seemed so bland and uninteresting, especially when compared to keeping his own company.

So the blond decided that the best course of action was to keep to himself until Xavier was ready to head home. The only conversation he'd make all night would be with the bartender, he resolved, as he took another sip of his drink.

* * *

As time went by, Tyler grew even more restless. Just as he was about to find Xavier to give him a tongue-lashing about broken promises (or, in the very least, school him in _Street Fighter II_ in front of their entire developmental roster), he heard raucous laughter coming from a nearby table. His eyes wandered over to the source of the noise. Unbeknownst to Tyler, Johnny Curtis had entered the bar at some point and judging by the reaction, was telling quite the anecdote. Tyler watched the situation from the corner of his eye as he picked a speck of lint off of his shirt.

He knew of Johnny Curtis, he'd seen some of his matches, but had never actually met him before. Johnny was a guy who had spent quite a few years in developmental. Very talented, but for whatever reason, he still hadn't gotten that main roster bump. From the way that everyone else was reacting, he supposed that Johnny must be pretty charming, as well. And maybe it was the alcohol talking, but Tyler thought he was pretty good looking - the very epitome of tall, dark, and handsome. Not as handsome as Tyler, of course... but the model had to admit, Johnny was pretty damn close.

For the first time that entire night, Tyler actually considered getting off of his bar stool to go mingle.

He didn't really have the chance to do so, however, as Johnny was quickly making his rounds to seemingly every group in the room. The blond's eyes discretely followed him from table to table, watching as he stopped to talk to just about everybody, his extroverted behavior acting a direct contrast to Tyler's own. Maybe it was just his eyes playing tricks on him, but Tyler could have sworn that Johnny was stealing glances at him, too.

As Tyler quietly observed, a thought gnawed at him.

 _Is this what other people feel like when_ _ **I**_ _enter the room?_

The implication made him uncomfortable. Tyler was never the one who did the _staring_ , he was always the one that was being _stared at._

Another thought quickly followed.

_Am I really so bored that I'm fixating on Johnny Curtis, of all people?_

And then another piled on top.

_Why is the idea of striking up a conversation suddenly making me so damn nervous?_

As he milled over these thoughts, Tyler went to take another sip of his vodka soda, only to find it empty. He shifted his focus down to the glass that once held his drink: a lonely ice cube, half-melted, sat in the bottom – a perfect visual representation for this entire evening. He shook the glass, listening to the wet clink of the ice hitting the sides, and considered waving the bartender over for a refill. Anything to shift his attention from these invasive thoughts about Johnny, whose voice was growing ever closer. Tyler's palms were suddenly so sweaty, but he convinced himself it was just condensation from the glass.

He silently cursed Xavier for bringing him here.

“A round of beers for everyone at that table, on me!” Out of nowhere, Johnny's voice boomed from right behind Tyler. The blond almost startled off of his bar stool but a hand landed on his shoulder to keep him in place. The nearby table hooted and hollered at the announcement of free drinks. Tyler stayed silent, watching as a credit card crossed the bar top to pay the tab. For whatever reason, Tyler didn't feel the usual urge to shake the hand off. He couldn't, not when it felt like it belonged there.

“And whatever this kid's having, give him a refill. He looks like he could use it,” Johnny nodded towards Tyler. That hand was still on his shoulder, warm and heavy, giving a gentle squeeze. Tyler just sat there blinking stupidly at the other man, at a loss for words. _Tyler Breeze_ , at a loss for words! What the _hell_ was happening to him? He was starting to wonder if he wasn't as good at holding his liquor as he once thought.

The only thing that he could manage was “Tyler Breeze... and thanks”, croaked out in a pitiful response. The brunette just smiled fondly at him, all twinkling eyes and pearly teeth. Tyler felt his face start to warm up.

Breeze hoped that maybe the other man would sit down and have a drink with him, perhaps start up a conversation. It was the first bit of stimulation Tyler felt since he had entered this lousy bar. However, just as quickly as he had arrived, Johnny was gone. The credit card made it's way back across the bar, that big warm hand slowly slid off of Tyler's shoulder, leaving metaphorical sparks in it's wake, and Johnny said “see you around, _Tyler_ ” with a playful wink before he waltzed off to socialize elsewhere.

Tyler watched him say a quick goodbye to a table of wrestlers who were sitting closest to the exit. As Johnny reached for the door handle, his eyes roamed back to Tyler and that warm smile spread across his face again. Breeze's palms broke out in another sweat, this time he couldn't blame condensation. A soft smile started to spread across his own face – the first one he'd shown all evening.

Their eye contact never broke, not until the door swung closed behind the brunette's back with a heavy thud. Tyler stared after him as his new vodka soda was placed down on the bar top, garnished with a wedge of lime and a fresh napkin underneath. Eventually, he turned back to the bar, twisted the lime into his drink and then took a sip, trying to get ahold of himself. There was a part of him that wanted to run out into the parking lot and chase the other man down, maybe find a better way to spend the night instead of killing any more time in this stupid bar... yet Tyler was too proud.

_Why do I always have to be so damn proud?_

It was just a few minutes later when Xavier finally reappeared, having come up short at the arcade cabinets one time too many. He sat in the empty stool next to Breeze, his own beer in hand. Tyler suspected from the look on Xavier's face that he was in for a heavy dose of teasing, but to his surprise, Xavier kept it simple:

"Johnny Curtis? _Really?_ "

Tyler didn't even bother to respond, he just quietly smiled into his drink.


End file.
